The women’s field at this year’s event is the biggest yet, with 20 entered, and judging by the level of ability shown during training sessions, the extreme performances should be spectacular to watch.

New to the sport is 19-year-old Kaya Turski, of Canada, who has been dominating the women’s freestyle field since she started competing in free-skiing at 18. Turski has swapped over her skills as a pro rollerblader and is doing tricks on the slopes once thought reserved for the men’s field, such as a switch cork 900.

In the big mountain (freeride) discipline, Jacobina Home (22), of Scotland, is another female who looks set to impress during the big mountain event at Treble Cone. Home is currently the top-ranked free rider in Europe and the only Briton in the IFSA (International Freeskier’s Association) world rankings.

The NZ Free Ski Open attracts skiers from more than twelve nations, making the event a melting pot of talent for the free-skiing world. Other big names who are competing are X-Games champion, Charles Gagnier (Canada), and Frenchman Loic Collomb-Patton, who will battle it out against New Zealand’s own Lyndon Sheehan and Jossi Wells.

Jossi Well’s brother, Beau, is the youngest competitor to have ever entered the competition, at age 10. The 2005 NZ Junior Free Ski national champion for under 10-year-olds will be showing his stuff in the slopestyle event on Wednesday.

The NZ Free Ski Open is the southern hemisphere’s largest event of its kind. It kicks off on Tuesday August 15 with the K2 Halfpipe at Snow Park, followed by the Slopestyle on August 16, also at Snow Park. The Volkl Big Mountain prelims take place at Treble Cone on Friday August 18 with the finals on the first following fine weather day.